Empire Files

Abby Martin interviews Ecuador's United Nations representative and Chair of negotiations creating a new international instrument to hold transnational corporations accountable for human rights and environmental crimes. Transnational corporations--many with larger economies than the countries they operate in--have enjoyed immunity from charges for destroying the environment and taking human lives. But Ecuador is leading a fight in the UN to create an international treaty and standards that can change this equation. At teleSUR's studios in Quito, Abby Martin interviews Ecuador's Permanent Representative to the UN, María Fernanda Espinosa, about the need for this step. FOLLOW // http://twitter.com/empirefiles LIKE // http://facebook.com/theempirefiles

Puerto Rico’s massive debt has been discussed at length in Congress and the media, all omitting the most important fact: the history of being a colonial subject for over 500 years, still owned and controlled by the United States. Abby Martin talks to two professors of Latin American studies, Luis Barrios and Danny Shaw, about the long struggle of Puerto Rico to break the shackles of US and Spanish colonialism—from indigenous resistance to the Young Lords in Harlem. Learn how the US Empire obscures the island’s colonial status today, who really is responsible for the so-called “debt crisis,” and how it can all be solved. FOLLOW // http://twitter.com/empirefiles LIKE // http://facebook.com/theempirefiles Music by Fluorescent Grey

Obama’s high-profile trip to Hiroshima was accompanied by a media storm that gave endless justifications for the US use of the atomic bomb on Japanese civilians. The myths are widely accepted in society, and underpin the notion of American exceptionalism. Abby Martin interviews Dr. Peter Kuznick, co-author with Director Oliver Stone of the bestselling book and HBO series "The Untold History of the United States,” about the real story behind the use of the atomic bombs—as well as the untold history of Imperial Japan, its role today for the US Empire, and the danger for new war on the horizon. FOLLOW // http://twitter.com/empirefiles LIKE // http://facebook.com/theempirefiles Music by Fluorescent Grey

Few corporations in the world are as loathed—and as sinister—as Monsanto. But the threat it poses to people and planet could be reaching new heights, as the World Health Organization has recently upgraded Monsanto's main product as carcinogenic to humans. With protests against the agrochemical giant held in over 40 countries in May, learn why the global movement against Monsanto is of critical importance to our future. In this episode of The Empire Files, Abby Martin issues a scathing expose on the corporate polluter, chronicling it's rise to power, the collusion of its crimes by the US government, and highlighting the serious danger it puts us in today. FOLLOW // http://twitter.com/empirefiles LIKE // http://facebook.com/theempirefiles Music by Fluorescent Grey

With thousands of advertisements seen by Americans everyday, and a corporate media that reinforces the needs of Empire, propaganda in the U.S. is more pervasive and effective than ever before. The manipulation of public opinion through suggestion can be traced back to the father of modern propaganda, Edward Bernays, who discovered that preying on the subconscious mind was the best way to sell products people don't need, and wars people don't want. To get a deeper understanding of how propaganda functions in today's society, Abby Martin interviews Dr. Mark Crispin Miller, professor of Media Studies at New York University. http://www.markcrispinmiller.com FOLLOW // http://twitter.com/empirefiles LIKE // http://facebook.com/theempirefiles Music by Fluorescent Grey

As the flailing Hillary Clinton camp steps-up its attacks on Bernie Sanders, her poll numbers continue to drop—and for the first time, have her losing to Donald Trump in a general election. On the cusp of the Democratic Party Convention, millions of Sanders' supporters are wondering what to do other than vote for a 'lesser of two evils.' To gain some insight, Abby Martin interviews Kshama Sawant, an open socialist who just won re-election to Seattle's city council—who also ran an insurgent campaign against the party establishment—about her advice to the Sanders' movement, and how struggles like the Fight for 15 can keep advancing regardless of the presidency. Watch teleSUR's The Empire Files every Friday. FOLLOW // http://twitter.com/empirefiles LIKE // http://facebook.com/theempirefiles Music by Fluorescent Grey

On Memorial Day and Veterans Day, politicians will speak at ceremonies all over the country and repeat their favorite mantra: "Support the troops." This pledge is hammered into the American psyche at every turn. But there is a hidden, dark history that shows that the politicians are in fact no friend to service members--but their greatest enemy. An easy way to prove this truth is to look at how they so quickly betray and abandon their soldiers after purposely ruining their lives, and even after using them as literal lab rats. In this disturbing chapter of The Empire Files, Abby Martin documents decades of experimentation on US troops—from nuclear tests to psychotropic drugs—as well as knowingly exposing them to deadly poisons, from sarin gas to Agent Orange. Most damning is that the hundreds of thousands of veterans seeking help from the government for the side-effects are always met with lies and denial. FOLLOW // http://twitter.com/empirefiles LIKE // http://facebook.com/theempirefiles Episode music by Anahedron Intro music by Fluorescent Grey

Digging deep into Hillary's connections to Wall Street, Abby Martin reveals how the Clinton's multi-million-dollar political machine operates. This episode chronicles the Clinton's rise to power in the 90s on a right-wing agenda, the Clinton Foundation's revolving door with Gulf state monarchies, corporations and the world's biggest financial institutions, and the establishment of the hyper-aggressive "Hillary Doctrine" while Secretary of State. Learn the essential facts about the great danger she poses, and why she's the US Empire's choice for its next CEO. Watch teleSUR's The Empire Files every Friday. FOLLOW // http://twitter.com/empirefiles LIKE // http://facebook.com/theempirefiles Music by Fluorescent Grey

Every drone flown by the U.S. military has inside a piece of the Democratic Republic of the Congo--a valuable mineral, of which the DRC has trillions of dollars worth buried underground. For five centuries, the continent of Africa has been ravaged by the world's Empires for its vast untapped treasure. Today, the U.S. Empire is increasing it's military role through their massive command network, AFRICOM, carrying out several missions a day. With the Congo being arguably the biggest prize for imperialist powers, Abby Martin is joined by Kambale Musavuli, spokesperson for Friends of the Congo, to look at Empire's role in their history and current catastrophe. Watch teleSUR's The Empire Files every Friday. FOLLOW // http://twitter.com/empirefiles LIKE // http://facebook.com/theempirefiles Music by Fluorescent Grey

Part of the way the U.S. Empire's elections are rigged is the corporate media's censorship of third-party candidates, despite their nationwide campaign efforts. The Green Party, running Dr. Jill Stein for President, has been totally ignored by the establishment. Abby Martin sits down with Dr. Stein to look at how her career in medicine helped her diagnose America's "multi-organ failure," and why her ideas pose such a threat to Empire. FOLLOW // http://twitter.com/empirefiles LIKE // http://facebook.com/theempirefiles Music by Fluorescent Grey